We stepped out of the exit. After a short walk, a refined lounge appeared, polished like jade, every amenity in place, a harbor made for rest.

We walked in and found Heartvoice, Celia Maya, and Wansheng already waiting, calm as lotus on still water, sampling snacks and drinks.

“Little Emperor, Qianji, and Holy Voice, you passed too. Lixue and the others aren’t out yet?”

Celia Maya saw us, poured three glasses of fruit juice, and slid them over like amber streams.

“Judging by your faces, it went smooth, right?” Heartvoice asked with a smile like spring sun.

“Pretty much. Your trial must’ve been lighter, since you’re here so early.”

I picked a seat, drained the juice in one go, then stretched, bones loosening like willow in a breeze.

“It was simple. If we’d reacted faster, we’d have cleared it in a heartbeat.”

Wansheng answered, slightly defiant, while her small mouth kept ferrying pastries like sparrows to a nest.

Though an artifact spirit needing vast energy to stay embodied, her joy in food fluttered just like any human’s.

“What happened in your trial?”

Qianji Sister, pressed close despite it being break time, leaned in like ivy seeking warmth.

“Simple if you call it simple, tricky if you call it tricky, it was…”

Celia Maya answered, then added, “We really owe it to Wansheng. Without her, we’d have tripped on a giveaway question.”

“I thought ours was easy. Didn’t expect yours to be even easier.”

Two paths both easy meant a third might be rough; worry rippled through me for Lingxiao, Lingsaki, and Lixue.

“Right, your side was way too easy,” Aunt Saintvoice chimed in, agreement like matching chimes.

“We could hardly believe it after clearing. So what was your trial?” Celia Maya nodded, curiosity bright as lamplight.

“A bit tougher than yours. Basically a game of hide-and-seek…”

Aunt Saintvoice sketched our process, her words light as brushstrokes on rice paper.

“Feels like you all were enjoying the ride. The one working hard was Little Emperor.”

Heartvoice looked my way and couldn’t help laughing, her mirth bubbling like a spring.

“It was pretty tiring.”

I said it, but the memory slid warm as silk; honestly, comfort outweighed effort.

“Oh please. Getting hugged by such pretty sisters and an aunt, and you call it hard? Little Emperor, you’re playing coy while pocketing candy.”

Aunt Saintvoice pinched my cheek, teasing like a fingertip tapping a bell.

It’s because you’re too beautiful that it’s ‘hard,’ I grumbled inwardly, words drifting like smoke.

“Well, he’s a hot-blooded boy. Finding it hard is normal.”

Maybe it was my imagination, but Heartvoice’s tone felt a shade suggestive, like dusk tinting clouds.

“Looks like both our trials weren’t tough. Only Lixue’s group is missing; maybe they hit the hardest one?”

Celia Maya murmured, worry shading her face like a passing cloud.

“Yeah, I wonder… huh? Speak of the devil—here they are.”

Heartvoice had barely finished when the door swung open. Lixue, the two sisters, and Wanling came in.

“This room is… Eh! It’s our dear Big Brother and everyone!”

“Great, Big Brother, you’re all okay!”

The moment they saw me, Lingxiao and Lingsaki sprinted over, twin swallows diving, and crashed into my arms.

Oof—good thing the chair had a back, or they would’ve toppled me like a sapling.

“You came out so late. We feared trouble, but it seems we worried for nothing.”

Feeling their soft, slender backs under my hand, my heart finally settled like sediment in clear water.

“If we hadn’t stocked enough Supreme Divine Elixir, we’d have run into real trouble and might’ve failed.”

Lixue found a spot and sat, fatigue veiling her like light mist, while Wanling floated off toward Wansheng.

“Sounds like your trial was brutal. Rest first.”

Celia Maya poured Lixue a glass of juice, then set fresh, warm pastries on a delicate plate and passed them over.

I meant to prep a share for Lingxiao and Lingsaki too, but they were already asleep in my arms, breath soft as foam.

They were truly exhausted; I couldn’t bear to wake them, not with sleep holding them like a tide.

“Exactly. They’re mostly worn out in spirit.”

Wanling agreed, her voice steady as a drum.

“Mental fatigue? What did your trial throw at you?”

Seeing them this drained, curiosity pricked at me like a thorn.

“Just thinking about it is scary. We had to stop a million undead creatures…”

Keeping it short, Wanling outlined their battle, each stroke stark as ink on snow.

“…”

“…That terrifying? Compared to that, ours feels embarrassing.”

Aunt Saintvoice stroked the sisters’ heads, pity warm as a shawl.

“Little Emperor, why don’t you take Lixue and the two to sleep a while? There’s a bedroom at the very back.”

Heartvoice suggested, her tone gentle as rain on bamboo.

“Okay… but carrying both without waking them is tricky.”

Even standing felt risky; any big movement would ripple their sleep like wind on a pond.

“That’s not a problem. I’ll send you.”

As Aunt Saintvoice spoke, gravity slipped away; darkness blinked. In the next breath we sat on a wide bed.

The bedding was new and clean, crisp as fresh linen. The room was hushed, dusk-soft compared to the bright lounge—an ideal nest.

I worked carefully to slip off the sisters’ shoes, lay them down, and pull up the quilt, motions slow as moonlight.

I told Lixue a word or two and meant to step out, but—

“Emperor, stay and sleep with us for a while.”

She caught me, her jacket just off, eyes like lakes at twilight. Huh—what’s this?

“That might not be good. I’ll disturb your sleep.”

The bed was large, but four bodies would squeeze it like crowded boats.

She set me beside Lingxiao, middle-right, then hugged me, burying her head in my chest like a cat.

“Lixue, you…” My mind stalled, gears slipping.

“I sleep better holding you.”

“Don’t just use me as a pillow… Uh—already out?”

I looked helplessly at the beauty in my arms as drowsiness pooled like warm tea. Well, since it’s like this, I’ll nap too.

With Lixue’s soft body and light fragrance blooming in my embrace, sleep took me swiftly, gentle as falling snow.

…